Man’s vanity has often carried him to unbelievable ends. Consider Alexander the Great, the Caesars, Napoleon, or Hitler. History has a number of examples of leaders demanding worship. In the coming Tribulation period, the final world dictator will insist on being worshipped.

King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon also let pride become his undoing. Constructing a great image in the plain of Dura he demanded that at a certain signal all in his kingdom fall down and worship it. Three in the crowd wouldn’t cooperate, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, Hebrews who had been brought to Babylon in the captivity of their people. As a result of their defiance of the king’s order, these three were thrown into a burning fiery furnace. God wonderfully protected them there. As the song written about their experience says: “They wouldn’t bend; they wouldn’t bow; they wouldn’t burn.”

When the king looked into the furnace he saw four men walking in the flames. His reaction is worth remembering. He said: “Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God” (Daniel 3:25). God had not forsaken His own in their time of trial. They stood for Him and He delivered them.

They were so committed to the Lord that they were determined to be true even if no deliverance came. Those three men must have been conspicuous when all the company on the plain of Dura bowed and left them standing. But they are the only ones of that crowd that we know by name today. God honored them for standing. And He will honor those who stand for Him today.